Bombs and Robots
by Trillos
Summary: Ziggs is the newest champion to join the League and soon piques Rumble's interest. The two establish a rivalry that takes twists and turns, turning them towards unfamiliar situations both external and internal. (Ziggs/Rumble)
1. Chapter 1

_Hello everyone! I've been reading stories on this site for a long time, and have decided to try my hand at writing stories too (particularly action/romance because I have an English assignment over those styles). I hope that my time here improves the way I write and that my writing isn't bad to begin with. Anyways, here's the first chapter of the story._

* * *

Ziggs sat on his bed as he tossed a small bomb from one hand to the other and replayed the highlight of his most recent match: his first pentakill. It truly was a day to remember for Ziggs. His tools of destruction had finally received the recognition that they deserved, and that moment could have easily been the greatest moment in the yordle's life.

Ziggs ran through the details of the match again and again: his narrow escapes, his commendable jukes, and, of course, his pentakill. The thought of getting a pentakill seemed years away to Ziggs, but he had managed to do just that within a short time of joining the League. He pinched himself close to a hundred times, trying to convince himself that it was a dream. Fortunately, it wasn't, and by the hundredth pinch, Ziggs' smile was wider than ever before. This was a moment to celebrate.

_Maybe a party,_ Ziggs thought. It would've been a great idea were it not for the fact that Ziggs didn't exactly have many friends at the League. He was a new champion to the League, the newest if he recalled correctly. He was also a yordle, the supposed inferior race according to the humans. As a result, Ziggs wasn't exactly known throughout the League, and his pentakill had netted nothing more than a few compliments from both his and the opposing team. Not even an article in the newspaper, unlike Katarina or Garen who seemed to get one every week for whatever reason.

_Might as well make a whole section devoted to them,_ Ziggs thought as he placed his small bomb on the table and grabbed the latest issue of the Journal of Justice.

Ziggs heard a knock at his door as he searched for the weekly Katarina-Garen article. Sure enough, there was one about their supposed secret romance, and upon reading the first few words, Ziggs threw the paper aside and walked towards the door. There was another knock, this one more aggressive than the last, as Ziggs turned the handle.

"Finally!" the visitor yelled as the door swung open.

"It's you!" exclaimed Ziggs. "Rumble… right?" he asked, recognizing the familiar blue fur.

"The one and only," he said proudly.

"You were in the top lane during that match when I got th—"

"That pentakill? Yeah, that wasn't fair. Annie did horrible that game and fed you." Rumble's proud tone was replaced by a harsher one that seemed to be laced with jealousy. "In fact, that's why I came here."

"What?" Ziggs asked, confused.

"I want a rematch. The Proving Grounds, tomorrow. Okay? We'll see who's better for sure: your bombs or Tristy. First to get killed loses." he challenged before walking away swiftly without waiting for a response. Ziggs could only watch Rumble, dumbfounded, as the he walked two doors down and entered his room without even a single glance backwards.

Ziggs closed the door and hopped back on his bed.

_What's the Proving Grounds? What's Tristy?_ he asked himself. Whatever those things were, Ziggs would be ready. He would show no mercy to Rumble, even if he was a fellow inventor.

* * *

Ziggs' eyes darted around the unfamiliar place as he spawned at his base. The Proving Grounds certainly looked more threatening than Summoner's Rift, and the fact that it was basically a bridge over a vast expanse of nothingness brought nervous jitters to Ziggs as he walked towards the middle to begin the match. It had taken a little research on Ziggs' part to find out what the Proving Grounds were and what Tristy was, so Ziggs felt as ready as he could ever be. He had spent the night looking at pictures of Tristy and analyzed its weaknesses. It looked shabby and horribly made, but Rumble had found success with his robot. Ziggs could only hope it wasn't as scary as he thought it would be.

He was never really able to see Rumble at his best; their earlier match was a short one where Ziggs' enemies surrendered at twenty-five minutes, which was exactly when Ziggs scored his pentakill.

"I guess we'll find out today, won't we?" he said to his bombs as he made his way to meet Rumble in the middle.

Upon reaching the middle of the bridge, Ziggs could see no sign of Rumble anywhere. Two bombs into each bush revealed nothing inside them, leaving Ziggs perplexed. Ziggs waited for about two minutes before he saw Tristy ungracefully make its way towards him. Rumble was on top, pulling levers and pushing buttons to keep Tristy upright.

"What happened? Why'd you take so long?" Ziggs asked, impatient.

"None of your business," Rumble said slowly as his brow furrowed.

Ziggs was still curious, but he paid little attention to it as he immediately tossed a bomb in Rumble's direction. As clumsy as the robot may have been, Tristy had managed to avoid the attack. In a quick counterattack, Rumble smashed a button on Tristy with his fist, sending a sharp, electrified harpoon in Ziggs' direction. It looked as painful as it was quick to travel, forcing Ziggs to take the full force of the harpoon. On impact, his limbs felt numb, almost paralyzed, though he could still move albeit at a slower pace. He hardly had time to feel relieved when a second harpoon hit him. It was as painful as the first but shocked his limbs even more. It took Ziggs a great deal of effort to then retreat from the flamethrower that was Tristy's arm. Ziggs ripped the two discharged harpoons out of his skin, drawing blood and inhibiting his movements even more. It was a pain to run, but if he wanted to survive, he would have to live through the pain.

Ziggs reached his tower in time, hoping that Rumble would stop his chase. Thankfully he did, allowing Ziggs to relieve himself as he retrieved the health pack near his inner turret. He breathed slowly as his open wounds closed themselves rather quickly. Taking a quick look at Rumble as he stood confidently just out of range of the turret, Ziggs couldn't help but admire the effectiveness of Tristy. Despite seeming thrown together by a child, it was still capable of combat. He had underestimated Rumble.

"Tired yet?" Rumble said coldly as Ziggs approached him.

"Not at all," Ziggs replied as he threw a bouncing bomb towards Tristy. Rumble sidestepped the bomb and fired two more harpoons in Ziggs' direction. Ziggs avoided the attack with a prior-placed satchel charge and used his airtime to his advantage. A hail of small explosives flew towards Tristy's feet, prompting Rumble to retreat to safety, though in his haste, Ziggs had managed to land a bouncing bomb on Tristy. The explosion sent a few screws flying off in all directions. When Ziggs landed, he refused to ease up on his assault on the enemy. He chased after Rumble and pelted him with a barrage of bombs. Their chase led them before Rumble's tower, but even the looming structure of destruction didn't faze Ziggs' resolve to end the match quickly. He unloaded everything he had at Ziggs: bouncing bomb, satchel charge, hexplosive minefield, and of course, the centerpiece of his collection, the mega inferno bomb. Ziggs watched in delight as his creations exploded in a violent flame, expecting to see a pile of hot scrap metal in the aftermath, but that would've been too easy.

And it was. Rumble and Tristy stood in the midst of charred stone terribly scathed, but alive.

"How?" Ziggs asked half-expectedly.

"Clutch scrap shield, barrier, and health pack. You've had your chance, and it turns out even your greatest bomb couldn't bring me down. Now it's my turn to show you the real power of yordle ingenuity!" he sneered. There was a fire of renewed vigor in Rumble's eyes, but there was also a crazed look that suited one of a madman. Rumble was looking for blood.

Ziggs immediately retreated, tossing a satchel charge in front of him to create some well-needed distance between him and the now murderous-looking Rumble behind him. Upon seeing his prey trying to escape, Rumble jammed a lever down. Fire spewed out of the Tristy's flamethrower, and harpoons darted in random directions. Tristy was slowly closing the distance between Rumble and Ziggs.

As Ziggs ran towards the health pack, he lobbed a bouncing bomb towards Rumble. It did little to no damage as Rumble's well-timed scrap shield mitigated any damage that the bomb may have caused. In addition, it did not slow Tristy nor did it make Rumble hesitate in any way. They continued their charge as Rumble launched another harpoon towards Ziggs. He barely avoided it with a quick sidestep, cursing Rumble's extraordinary marksmanship. The one harpoon whizzed past him, but it was only one. Ziggs looked towards the lone harpoon twice, only to realize too late that Rumble had only sent one harpoon out this time. The second harpoon hit him square in the chest and made Ziggs feel like his heart had stopped. The sudden burst of electricity pained every inch of his body, providing the perfect opening for Rumble as a barrage of rockets shot off into the air from Tristy's backside. Ziggs braced himself as best he could for the rocket's impact, but the rockets had landed in a line behind him, effectively creating a barrier between Ziggs and his escape. Tristy and Rumble caught up to him, grabbing his health pack in the process. Tristy was glowing a hot red, and its movements were more bumpy than usual.

Ziggs wanted to run away, but the harpoon's effect still lingered. He would be forced to lose with minimal resistance. Rumble marched up to him, tanking through the tower shots and holding Tristy's mace arm high in the air.

With the tower pounding on Rumble, Ziggs saw a slim chance for survival. As excruciating as it was, Ziggs tossed a satchel charge before him, detonated it, and blindly threw a last bouncing bomb behind him.

A loud explosion, louder than any bouncing bomb, echoed in Ziggs' ears as he made a clumsy landing on his back. He looked around to Tristy, who was nothing more than a disintegrated pile of scrap metal. Recuperating for a moment, Ziggs painfully tore the last harpoon from his skin and tossed it over the bridge. He crawled towards his inner tower health pack and moaned as the medicine did its job to help ease the pain. Struggling to his feet, Ziggs walked back to the pile of scrap to find Rumble.

_That was a quick match, but where's Rumble?_ Ziggs thought as he searched for any sign of blue fur among the bolts, screws, and metal plates. No sooner than he had stepped closer to the wreckage had Rumble fallen from the sky, directly on Ziggs.

The two lay in a mangled mess as both tried to recover from the impact of Rumble's fall. Rumble was the first to get back on his feet. He shoved Ziggs aside and dusted himself off, walking back towards his base. Their duel was over, and he had lost.

"Wait! Rumble!" Ziggs cried as he managed to get on his knees.

Rumble continued walking farther and farther away, ignoring Ziggs' calls.

Ziggs, disappointed and a bit saddened, muttered: "Good game."


	2. Chapter 2

_Second chapter! I feel that this chapter acted as a sort of filler, so I'm sorry about that. As such, I hope that the writing hasn't changed dramatically, since I worry over different aspects of it that I focus on different concepts every time I sit down to write. Still trying to overcome a slight writer's block (bad for my essays), so I hope that gets resolved soon. Anyways, thanks for the positive feedback, though I'm still wondering where I could improve my writing, so any help with that is much appreciated. Thanks!_

* * *

Ziggs slept uneasily the previous night. The way Rumble had just stormed off made him sorry for him, even if Rumble did nothing to deserve any pity. Ziggs spent the next morning slowly sipping his coffee as he thought of how to spend his day, tapping the table alone and unoccupied. Even his favorite coffee that keep him energized throughout the day seemed to have a lesser effect on him.

_Maybe I'll just sleep today,_ Ziggs thought after coming up with nothing to do. _Not like there's much going on anyways, no matches scheduled today, no nothing._ Ziggs gulped the last of the coffee and licked the few drops that remained. Placing the coffee cup to the side next to a stack of dirty dishes, he hopped into bed and threw the covers over his face. He lay there for a couple of minutes before jumping from the bed, frustrated by his inability to sleep.

_I really need friends. This place is so boring with nothing to do. I'll just go for a walk outside._ Ziggs griped. He grabbed his backpack and headed towards the door. Just as he was about to turn the handle to leave, there was a knock. Ziggs opened it immediately, revealing Rumble once again.

"That was quick," Rumble said.

"I was just about to leave," Ziggs pointed out. "Do you need something?"

"I just wanted to… apologize for yesterday. My behavior was… uncalled for and… unnecessary." Rumble seemed to have difficulties shaping the right words with his mouth, seeing as he wasn't one to ask for forgiveness.

"I didn't think too much of it, so don't worry," Ziggs said.

"Okay, thanks. So… where are you going?" Rumble asked awkwardly.

"Nowhere in particular. Just going to find a place to eat," he responded.

"For breakfast?"

Ziggs nodded.

"Do you mind if I come with you then? I know a good place. I'll pay too to make it up to you," he offered.

Ziggs nodded again, closing the door behind him. He followed Rumble through the Institute and past hallways and corridors that lead to who-knows-where, eventually arriving at a wing of the building that resembled the living quarters of Ziggs and Rumble. Rumble looked at the number on each door, finding the right one. When he did, he knocked until it seemed to magically swing open—there was nobody at the door—and an aroma of bread, cupcakes, and cookies flooded the hallway. Ziggs was so entranced by it that he would have fallen over if Rumble hadn't been in the way.

"Hey!" Rumble exclaimed as Ziggs bumped into him.

"Sorry. The smell… it's really nice," Ziggs explained.

"Exactly why I like to eat here sometimes," Rumble said.

"Well if it isn't you, Rumble... and another yordle," said a voice from the room. "I'm assuming you want what you always get?"

Ziggs looked towards the open doorway where a woman with tattered wings and unfitting culinary attire stood with a mixing bowl in hand.

"Yes, please," Rumble said. "Oh, make that two!"

"I'll be right back with them," Morgana said as she closed the door.

"Who is she?" Ziggs asked. He was definitely not expecting a winged woman who baked.

"She's Morgana. She's one of the few people here who don't make fun of yordles. Probably 'cause she's been ostracized by her peers too," he answered.

"And she's a baker? Ziggs asked, confused.

"Yeah, but it's more of her hobby if anything. She has a bakery, but on the weekends, she tends to stay home and bake a few things for anybody having a weekend craving, like me."

The door opened once again as Morgana held a ready box full of sweet-smelling baked goods. She handed it to Ziggs as Rumble took out some gold from his pocket and handed it to her. Ziggs looked at the box design as Rumble finished paying Morgana.

_Sinful Succulence? Catchy,_ he thought.

Rumble then led Ziggs to a nearby patio where several champions were already eating. As they walked to find a table for themselves, they received stares from everyone—not because they were yordles, but because of the Sinful Succulence box that would make anybody crave a huge cookie or two. Ignoring the others, Rumble walked past the tables and into the gardens behind the patio. Ziggs looked behind him as some of the champions still watched him and Rumble, but they soon lost interest as they retreated out of sight.

"Seriously, I can't stand those humans. They need to mind their own business and quit ogling us like we're eye candy or something," Rumble complained as he sat down on the grass behind the bush that hid the two from the prying eyes of the other champions.

"They're not that bad," Ziggs said as he placed the box of goodies down on the ground and opened it, intensifying the already strong aroma of the food inside. Rumble grabbed a miniature, decorated glazed donut from the many pastries in the box, and Ziggs grabbed a croissant coated in a delicious spread of some sort.

"They take us for granted and treat us unfairly, and you say they're fine?! The only yordle that's really won their favor is Heimerdinger, and even then, he's a sellout looking for nothing more than human acceptance!" Rumble's voice had grown angrier and his donut was now a squished mass of dough in his small hands.

Ziggs could only sit there silently. He knew little of how Rumble felt about the humans and wasn't expecting such a violent outburst from Rumble.

Realizing his outburst, Rumble sat down and took a bite out of the flattened donut, ashamed.

"S-sorry," Rumble apologized.

"It's fine. I didn't know," Ziggs said slowly.

As they continued eating, both remained silent; the situation had made the atmosphere much too awkward for any relaxed or fluid conversations. When they emptied the box with more rooms in their bellies to spare, they began the silent journey back to their rooms. As they stood at the point where they would split, Rumble finally broke the lasting silence.

"Oh, Ziggs," Rumble called.

"Hmm?"

"I have a match scheduled for tomorrow. If you're not busy, you should come," he prodded.

"I'll see," Ziggs said, glad that he would have something to occupy his time the next day. "I'll see you later, then?"

"Okay," Rumble said as they began to go their separate ways. It was a rather weird and boring way to part with each other, but it couldn't be helped; neither had much to say to the other after that.

In Ziggs' opinion, their breakfast had been rather bland and much too awkward for his taste. Still, Ziggs had enjoyed their little... breakfast date—the only words Ziggs could use at the moment to describe it—despite Rumble's outburst. Ziggs had finally found someone to call "friend" and could only hope that Rumble saw him in a similar light. Ziggs stepped back into his boring room, hoping for something else to spice up his life, but none came. He ended up spending the rest of the day and night in his bed, awaiting the day when he could see Rumble in all his glory.


End file.
